Victories

We’re proud that after more than twenty-five years of organizing in the Eastside, our parents, youth and residents have achieved positive changes in our schools and community. It’s through the participation of hundreds of leaders and thousands of activists, uniting under one vision and one voice that we’re achieving progress.

Reallocation of millions of dollars to Eastside schools.

Equity is Justice in 2014 and 2018: As a member of the Equity Alliance for LA’s Kids, InnerCity Struggle secured the historic Los Angeles Unified School District (LAUSD) “Equity is Justice” resolution, allocating millions of state funds called Local Control Funding Formula (LCFF) dollars to the highest need schools in 2014. This landmark victory was the first time the School Board agreed to allocate state funding based on need and acknowledged inequitable schooling, neighborhood and student experiences. We also won a second commitment in 2018 to strengthen the definition of “highest-need” and “high-need” schools through the district’s adoption of the “Equity is Justice 2.0” resolution.

Eastside students reach historic college-readiness rates.

Equal Access to College Prep Classes in 2005 to 2015: In 2004, we took the controversial stance that all students should be college-ready. As part of a citywide coalition, InnerCity Struggle won the cornerstone “A-G Life Prep” policy in 2005 which mandates college-prep courses for all LAUSD students as a high school graduation requirement. In response to opposition forces calling for the elimination of the mandate at the ten-year anniversary, InnerCity Struggle successfully reaffirmed the district’s commitment to college-prep for all with the historic “Equity in A-G” resolution. The 2015 policy invested $31 million in academic supports for college prep completion over two years. The culmination of this work is the historic 74% A-G readiness graduation rate for the LAUSD Class of 2016. As for the Eastside specifically, the aggregate LAUSD graduation rate for Eastside high schools in 2005 stood at 44% without A-G college courses required. In 2016, it reached a historic 80% with A-G requirements.

Permanent Renter Protections

LA County Renters Victory in 2019: With the Unincorporated Tenants United (UTU) Coalition, InnerCity Struggle helped secure a permanent rent stabilization ordinance from the Los Angeles County Board of Supervisors that protects more than 400,000 residents from evictions without “just cause” and more than 43,000 from rent increases that exceed 8% in unincorporated Los Angeles County. The victory marks the largest set of permanent rent protections for residents of unincorporated Los Angeles County history.

Zero suspensions for ‘willful defiance’ at Eastside schools.

School Climate Bill of Rights in 2013: For more than a decade, our student and parents leaders challenged the district’s zero tolerance policies that resulted in school-push out and poor academic performance. As a member of the Brothers, Sons, Selves coalition, we were the first community organizers to successfully ensure the elimination of “willful defiance” as grounds for suspensions in a California school district through the “School Climate Bill of Rights” win. As a result of our resolution, we soon saw dramatic decreases in suspensions, increases in average daily attendance and remarkable improvements in academic achievement. This landmark victory soon became a statewide and national model for breaking the school to prison pipeline. In 2019 with the Brothers, Sons, Selves (BSS) Coalition, InnerCity Struggle helped to win a statewide ban on “willful defiance” suspensions.

New comprehensive wellness services for students and families.

New Wellness Centers at Roosevelt and Mendez High Schools in 2016-17: In partnership with School Board Member Monica Garcia, we secured $173 million for the Roosevelt High School modernization plan, integrating a 5,000 square foot wellness center to provide all members of the community with healthcare services. We also won a $7.4 million commitment to build a Wellness Center at Mendez High School, also an envisioned 5,000 square foot facility providing free or low-cost health care services to the community.

A new elementary school, a new adult school and two new high schools for Eastside students.

In 2002, our youth leaders surveyed more than 3,000 of their classmates to identify the most pressing issues impacting Garfield and Roosevelt high schools. Overwhelmingly, students identified the main problem to be overcrowding. After conducting extensive research, our leaders discovered it had been more than 80 years since the district had built any new schools in the Eastside. In 2004, the LAUSD School Board voted in favor of InnerCity Struggle’s campaign to build three new high schools, one new elementary school and a new adult school.